The Defense Committee of the Swedish Parliament warned in a new report that the possibility of an armed attack on Sweden or its allies cannot be ruled out. According to the document, Russia could take such action in the relatively near future, AFP reports, News.bg reports.
The report states that the risk of military aggression against Sweden or countries with which it is allied remains real and should not be ignored. The authors of the document emphasize that the development of the international situation requires constant readiness and close monitoring of Moscow's actions.
According to the committee's assessment, Russia could take offensive military action in order to test NATO's unity and the reliability of collective defense mechanisms within the Alliance. The report notes that such a scenario is possible if the Kremlin considers the political situation to be sufficiently favorable.
Special attention is paid to Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, which is traditionally considered the main guarantee of the collective security of the member states. According to this principle, an attack on one NATO country is considered an attack on all allies. At the same time, the text provides for each state to take such individual or joint actions as it deems necessary, including the use of armed force.
The authors of the report believe that Russia could decide on such a move even without having the military superiority that is traditionally considered necessary in preparing for such a conflict.
A similar position was expressed by the Commander-in-Chief of the Swedish Armed Forces, Mikael Klesson. In an interview with SVT, he stated that Russia is aware of the rearmament processes in Western countries and raised the question of whether Moscow would wait for the further strengthening of the West's defense capabilities if it considered that certain weaknesses currently existed.
The Defense Committee includes representatives of all parliamentary parties in Sweden. The prepared report will serve as the basis for long-term planning of defense policy and the development of the country's armed forces in the coming years.